


Gentle Snare

by Zapino



Category: Troyler - Fandom, Troyler RPF, Video Blogging RPF, Youtube RPF, Youtubers
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Rock Band, Anal Fingering, Blow Jobs, Body Part Kinks, Body Worship, Drummer Tyler, High School, M/M, Musicians, Rutting, Singer Troye, Smut, Some Humor, Unrequited Crush, a tiny bit of alcohol, thirst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-10
Updated: 2016-01-10
Packaged: 2018-05-12 23:48:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,825
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5686336
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zapino/pseuds/Zapino
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Troye has a crush on his best friend, whom he agrees to help with a band project. But he's never met said best friends hot drummer brother before...</p><p>The one where Troye's got a thing for arms.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Gentle Snare

**Author's Note:**

> This little AU oneshot is intended to imitate the classic boyxboy stories, where the young, inexperienced (but thirsty af) main character is seduced by the older, self-confident hunk. It’s a format that I love when it works, and the more clichés, the better. And in the name of the Troyler Gods of Thirst, this story is shamelessly centered on how god damn hot Tyler is, with one particular body part in focus (get your mind out of the gutter, not that body part).
> 
> (It was only after writing and publishing this that it was brought to my attention that the members of a certain band carry these names too, so of course, it's a complete coincidence. This fic has nothing to do with twenty one pilots.)

“So, will you do it?”

Troye looked up from where he was gathering his books from the desk he had been sitting at for the past two hours, trying to figure out how he was supposed to remember all spring semester worth of advanced chem for the test that following Monday. His head didn’t seem to be willing to take in any more information, no matter how hard he tried.

His tired eyes were met by the sight of one of his best friends smiling winningly at him while rubbing his hands together in barely contained excitement. Ready to leave the library after a long day of stressing over the looming finals, Troye studied him coolly while putting his things away in his backpack.

Josh was 18, like himself, and a nice-looking boy, with dirt blond hair and a crooked smile. He was funny and a bit of a prankster, always up for adventures and spontaneous road trips that he insisted on dragging Troye along on. His sharp, brown eyes were so dark that they seemed able to swallow you up whole, to the point where you’d get lost in them with no chance of finding your way out…

Okay, so maybe Troye had a bit of a crush on his friend, one which he’d hopelessly harbored for going on a year now. It could never come to anything, though, since Josh was the straightest boy to ever walk in a tattered pair of Converse. Troye wasn’t stupid or deluded; he knew that the swooping sensation in his belly whenever Josh smiled at him or put his arm around his shoulders was all there was to it. Josh had always been comfortable with Troye being gay, ever since the day Troye came out to him last September, and their friendship would always be just that – friendship; a genuine camaraderie with someone who shared their mutual interest in music and creativity.

“Do I have to?” Troye asked, glancing at his friend.

Josh’s smile fell a little. “Of course you don’t have to; no one’s forcing you.” He formed his hands into a gesture reminiscent of prayer and Troye wondered if it was intentional or not. “You’d just be doing me the greatest favor if you would.”

Troye let his eyes drop to where he was closing up the zipper on his backpack with quick tugs. He looked up again while shrugging it onto his back, wondering what he was thinking, agreeing to Josh’s pleas, and if he’d survive the anxiety that would surely follow his decision. But the puppy dog eyes that Josh aimed at him were crumbling his resistance, picking apart all the reasons why he shouldn’t one by one.

“Come on, Troye, I’ll love you forever…” Josh pleaded, his bottom lip set in a most appealing and totally unfair pout.

Troye held out for as long as he could, which ended up being about four seconds. “Alright, I’ll do it,” he sighed in defeat, affecting great hardship. “But only to stop your nagging; not because I’d have your eternal love.”

“As if you’d be complaining,” Josh winked, at once his regular, teasing self after Troye’s agreement, and he reached up to ruffle Troye’s hair.

Josh was the taller of the two – only by an inch, but that was still enough for him to hold it over Troye, boasting his superior height whenever he needed to best Troye in anything. Troye usually only rolled his eyes when he did. It was the better alternative to, for example, measuring strength; Troye had always been a bit scrawny, and even though puberty had been good to him when it came to his overall looks (if he said so himself), his body still lacked the definition of muscle that he so badly wanted, leaving him lanky rather than the chiseled he would have preferred. 

“Shut up, dickhead,” Troye huffed as he ducked out the way, pushing his dark curls back into some semblance of control, preferably the intentionally mussed that Josh had said once looked good on him.

He didn’t know why he did things like that – put Josh’s opinion of him on a pedestal – but he couldn’t help it. His mom had always told him that crushes where good for you, even the ones that never led to anything. They made you want to be a better person in the eyes of the one you liked, and it was inevitable that you became one along the way. Troye was willing to agree to a point, since his crush on Josh served to make him feel like he was floating when things were good, all while being painfully sobering in the unavoidable moments when he was brought back down to earth.

And he was well aware that Josh knew about his crush on him. Even if he’d never said as much, Josh did make it a point to tease him about it when he was feeling particularly reckless, and it always made Troye’s pulse speed up in mixed fear and excitement to have their teasing skim so close to the raw, naked truth.

“Only if you stop lying, asswipe,” Josh grinned, once again skillfully brushing past the subject with no damage done.

With a shove at Josh’s shoulder, Troye fought an answering smile and left it at that, quickly changing the subject back to safer grounds. “When’s the show again?”

“In three weeks, so it’s gonna be tight,” Josh replied on a whoosh of breath, rubbing his neck as he looked at his feet while they made their way out towards the school parking lot. “We’ll need to rehears at least three nights a week, and make sure you set aside your weekends!”

“All of them?!” Troye asked incredulously, wondering how much time it could take to learn a few songs anyway.

Josh rolled his eyes. “Stop acting like you would’ve had any other plans anyway.”

Troye looked away towards the few cars still parked at the edge of the great lawn in front of their school, trying and failing to find a way to deny it. And he knew it was useless to protest the work they’d have to put in before the performance.

Since Josh’s younger cousin Daniel had chickened out of being lead singer of Josh’s little project band, Troye was more or less his last hope of putting a somewhat functioning ensemble together in time. Josh had told him that his older brother, who was home from just having graduated college, was already helping out by filling the spot as drummer – they really didn’t know anyone else who played. It would have been nice to have had more time to get used to the idea of performing in front of a bigger crowd than Troye had ever faced, but the state rock festival, which was open for local bands to showcase themselves, certainly wouldn’t wait for his nerves to come around. Especially not when some rather big industry names were rumored to attend, ready to scout for talent.

He was lucky in a way, though. Nerves and performance anxiety aside, the one thing Troye trusted was his singing; it had always been a large part of him to express himself through song, and his natural knack for it had yet to fail him. His general interest would, with a bit of luck, even take him through to his higher education, as he had long planned to be a music major at the local college when the time came.

“I guess a C in advanced chem will have to do,” Troye shrugged and lamented the time he was about to lose that really should be spent on studying.

Josh gave him one of his crooked smiles and nudged his shoulder gently. “Seriously, though, Troye,” he said in his most sincere tone of voice, “Thank you so much for doing this. You’re literally saving one of the only chances I’ll have at my dream, here.”

They’d reached the parking at this point, and Troye’s gaze searched among the parked cars, looking for Josh’s old, plum colored Toyota. “Let’s see how it works out before you shower me in praise,” he said with a smile and a glance in Josh’s direction. “But I’m glad I’m able to help out.”

It was true – of course he was happy to do it. All his protests were more or less just for show. There was no denying that he’d do everything he could for the chance to help Josh with anything, and making him happy like this made a giddy sense of pride bloom in Troye’s chest. It didn’t matter that it was useless to feel that way, at least where his crush was concerned – happiness was never useless, no matter what the source. And he would be helping a friend who had always been good to him, which still meant something. At least that was what Troye was telling himself at that moment.

He was just about to dare lift his gaze from where they’d been studying his shoes, when Josh caught his arm and pulled him to a stop. Quickly looking up to catch himself from stumbling, Troye saw Josh’s car pull in to the parking lot.

“There he is,” Josh said with his eyes following the car as it moved closer through the scattered rows of cars.

Troye, who had just been wondering who’d be driving Josh’s car, squinted and tried to have a better look at the driver. The glaring sun only allowed the shadowed outline of a person to be visible at that angle. “Who?”

It had become somewhat routine that Josh gave him a ride home, since Troye’s house was more or less on the way, with just a small detour a couple streets into his neighborhood. Sometimes he’d pick him up the mornings too so that Troye wouldn’t have to take the bus, but only when their schedules matched – lord knew it’d be asking the impossible for Josh to get up half an hour earlier than strictly necessary. However, in the afternoons, Troye often ended up just coming to Josh’s, having dinner there and hanging out for a bit before going home.

Troye actually loved going to Josh’s house – his parents had always been very accepting, always greeting him with a smile and asking how his day had been, welcoming him into their home as if he belonged. Josh’s mom in particular was a whirlwind of theatrics and laughter who loved taking care of people. In a weird sort of way, Troye sometimes felt like part of the family. And he knew that they knew he was gay. Josh had asked him if it was okay to tell them after he’d come out, insisting they’d be cool about it. He’d been absolutely right, and Troye was grateful for their silent, yet clear support.

“My brother,” Josh said in answer, lifting his hand and waving it at the mystery driver so he’d spot them where they stood in the far corner of the parking lot. Troye could hear music pouring out from the open front windows, recognizing it as one of those classic rock songs that everyone knew by heart, no matter who they were or where they were from. “He’s got my car while he’s home.”

Troye had only ever seen Josh’s older brother in the family pictures lined up on a few shelves and dressers throughout Josh’s house – some old and a bit faded, others from just a couple years back. Unlike Josh, his brother wore glasses, and grew from a mischievously grinning boy with chubby cheeks and a bowl cut in the earlier photos, to a teenager with kind, blue eyes and a narrow face in the ones taken just before he’d left for college. Troye had always thought he looked like a nice guy, and was able to spot a few family resemblances to both Josh and their mother.

But other than a few stories from their childhood and the odd report on how his studies were going, as well as passing his old room on the landing while heading for Josh’s, Troye rarely thought about the fact that Josh had a brother at all. He’d actually never met him before, and meeting new people always made Troye a little nervous, even if he was positive that he would be cool.

As the car finally pulled up in front of them, Josh jogged over to the passenger side and quickly opened the door to slip into the seat. Troye, however, felt like he’d been rooted to the spot, unable to do much else than stare at the man with the same dirt blond hair as Josh, though styled into a casual quiff, and a pleasant face, reclining slightly in the driver’s seat. His one hand was gripping the top of the steering wheel while he had the other elbow slung out the open window at his side.

He was the very image of nonchalance and quite possibly the handsomest man Troye had ever seen up close like this. He wore pilot sunglasses and a black t-shirt that looked like it had been painted on his solid torso, and he turned to look at Troye, one light brown eyebrow lifting over the edge of his glasses.

“You coming?!” Josh’s voice shouted over the music, and Troye blinked for the first time in what felt like minutes, seeing Josh lean over the center console to glare questioningly at him.

‘ _Actually, I think just did a bit_ ,’ Troye thought to himself while letting his eyes fall back to the living, breathing wet dream who was now giving him an achingly familiar crooked smile over the strong, masculine slant of his jawline. It made Troye want to whimper, which was an impulse that woke him up from his daze quite effectively. Noticing his increasing pulse and the way his hands were starting to sweat a little, Troye somewhat shakily turned to open the door on the driver’s side and slid into the backseat.

Jesus fuck, _that was Josh’s brother_? What had happened to the thin kid who’d smiled patiently at the camera in those photos on the mantelpiece in Josh’s house? Troye swallowed around his suddenly parched throat. Quite obviously, that boy was long gone and in his stead was the broad shouldered hunk giving them a lift home.

“Troye, have you actually ever met Tyler?” Josh asked, turning his head to speak over his shoulder while his brother – Tyler – put the car in gear and set it in motion once more.

Troye glanced up at the rear view mirror, where he could see Tyler tilt his head up a bit as if looking back at him too. “N-no, I haven’t,” he managed to stutter, wondering when he’d last felt his heartbeat in his throat like he was doing then. He twisted his hands in lap, not really knowing where to look.

“Nice meeting you,” a smooth baritone said from the front seat, and it took Troye a moment to regain his equilibrium after the lightly rumbling bass of Tyler’s voice washed over him, even in the din of the rock song that was still coming from the speakers around them.

“Hi,” he replied lamely just as they left the parking lot and entered the local street that circled the campus grounds. He snuck a look in the mirror again, and refused to acknowledge the slight heat that filled his cheeks as he saw Tyler’s lips stretch into a wider smile, which made what little was visible of his face in the mirror practically glow, if that was at all possible. Something inside Troye’s chest fluttered pleasantly.

He paused at the sensation; that was the first time he’d felt anything like that in regards to someone other than Josh. Now, if he’d been in a position where he could claim full possession of all his faculties, Troye would have called the feeling that followed it something close to guilt, as if he was being unfaithful somehow. A bit overwhelmed by the realization, his eyes fell on his friend to study him carefully, watching his profile as he nodded in time to the music and made a valiant attempt at following the drums by clapping the tops of his thighs and tapping his feet.

“You’re fucking it up,” Tyler drawled, breaking Troye’s train of thought. Tyler seemed almost annoyed as he addressed his little brother, indicating his drum skills (which, yes, despite the strength of his crush on Josh, even Troye could admit weren’t very good).

“No, I’m not.” Josh’s protest sounded just as annoyed as his brother’s, if not more.

“You are,” Tyler insisted, turning his head to look left at a juncture before pulling out onto the main road. “Every lick, you keep dropping the last triplet and it’s not cute.”

“As if you’d do them perfectly,” Josh retorted, and Troye could almost hear the petulant pout in his voice. He followed the exchange with interest, never having seen his friend interact with a sibling before. It tended to bring out interesting sides in people; somehow, it made them let their guard down and act like a truer version of themselves when they were around their brothers and sisters.

“Yes, I would.” The smirk was clear in Tyler’s voice. “I did this entire album with some of the guys back at school.”

Josh sighed heavily and gave Tyler an exasperated look. “You think I actually care if I get every lick right in this stupid, old song?”

Tyler gave a short laugh, and Troye jumped a little at the burst of sound, loud yet captivatingly cheerful. It made the beginnings of a smile stretch his lips even before he was aware of it happening. “You do, or you wouldn’t be pissed about fucking it up.”

“I’m not‒ _ugh_ , just _shut up_!” Josh growled. “When are you getting a job, anyway? This is my car, you know!” He was sounding more frustrated than Troye had ever heard before. Troye’s smile grew. He was taking great pleasure in seeing this side of his friend since Josh was usually the one who made Troye lose patience.

“The minute you stop being a spoiled brat, asswipe,” Tyler grinned and reached over to scuff his knuckles through Josh’s hair, to which he gave a bark of outrage and ducked to the side where Tyler couldn’t reach.

There was a tug at Troye’s heart at the sight. He easily recognized the gesture as an exact replica of what Josh usually did to him, crude nickname included, and he paused, not really sure how to feel about it. Should he be flattered that Josh acted like that with him or sad for the very same reason? On one hand, it probably meant that Josh cared for him much like a brother, but on the other, that also pretty much eradicated any and all possibility of there being a romantic connection between them.

Troye sighed gently, the sound getting lost in the music inside the car, and turned to stare unseeingly out the window at his side. Maybe it was time to get over his obsession with Josh? It couldn’t be good to be this hung up on someone who was so obviously never going to be his. What if he was holding off the chance of noticing someone else? What if that someone could see his feelings for Josh so clearly that they held back because of it? The thought made him frown, suddenly a bit annoyed at himself for going on dreaming about a straight boy when he could be missing attention from someone who might have actually been worth the effort.

The sound of someone calling his name made him blink and turn his head. He locked eyes with Josh, who had twisted around to look at him over the backrest of his seat.

“Hm?” Troye asked, having been too preoccupied with his thoughts to notice that his friend was speaking.

“I _said_ ,” Josh said, dragging the word out exaggeratedly, and Troye felt himself flush in embarrassment at having been caught acting weird. “You’re coming with us to try out some of the songs tonight, right?”

Troye’s eyes went to the rearview mirror again. He imagined Tyler glancing back at him too, though he would never know because of the sunglasses he wore. Looking away quickly, Troye cleared his throat, not really wanting to linger on the fact that he was simultaneously loving how good those shades looked on Tyler and hating them for hiding his eyes.

“I-I have to go home, actually,” he lied, trying to seem unconcerned all while his heartbeat wouldn’t slow in his chest. “Mom wanted help with something.” Why he was making stuff up, Troye wouldn’t be able to tell you, but it suddenly felt imperative that he didn’t spend any more time around someone who made him lose focus on what was going on around him. Not before he’d had some time to digest all the impressions and new realizations he’d had in the space of the past seven minutes or so, at least.

“Come on, Troye.” Josh tilted his head and gave him a pleading look. “We really need to use every chance we can here to have this down in time.”

Troye waited for a moment to respond, wondering if Tyler was going to join in the protests. But the blond stayed silent while he easily maneuvered the car through the slowly thickening afternoon traffic.

When Troye shrugged apologetically, Josh shook his head and turned back around to face forward again. “Okay, whatever. But can we do tomorrow night? Me and Tyler can run you through the set list and then Joe will join us after he’s done with swim practice.”

Joe was a mutual friend of theirs; an introspective boy with a good sense of humor and a small, chiseled body. He’d hang out with them from time to time, although he was really closer to Caspar, so when he joined Troye and Josh, it was usually when Cas was busy doing something else. Joe played a mean bass, though, and as such had a given spot in Josh’s band.

Troye nodded somewhat stiffly. “Sure, that’s fine.”

“Okay,” Josh said again. “I want this to be as polished as we can get it.”

“Of course,” Troye mumbled, only half listening as Josh began pointing out directions to Troye’s house for Tyler to follow. He was more concerned with how he was supposed to get over his performance nerves in time for the festival, especially when the mere thought of singing even in front of Josh’s (admittedly very attractive) brother made his hands shake a little.

Troye swallowed around the growing lump in his throat. The three weeks that lay ahead were going to be testing his ability to keep it together in more ways than he would have liked.

-!!-

Breathing out heavily and pulling out the plugs out of his ears, Troye leaned back against the sill of the window, feeling the thin, black sheet hanging in front of it against the backs of his arms. It was being held in place over the frame by tacks, making it a lazy yet effective way to keep the sun and curious on-lookers out of the little house. Well… Calling it a “house” might be exaggerating things somewhat, since the tiny building they were in was actually a garden shed converted into a guest bedroom. But despite that, it was a convenient place for Josh and his band to practice without bothering the rest of his family too much, even if it was kind of tiny.

Standing in one of the corners was Tyler’s drum set, in front of which two monitor speakers were turned towards the main room at an angle. Various gear as well as mess of cables and broken guitar picks littered what little open floor space there was left after discounting the old, worn sofa bed that was pushed against one of the walls.

It was a place Troye knew he was going to get very familiar with over the course of the coming weeks, as that day was only their second of playing together. The night before, he’d had a listen through the songs as the others played them for him, and tried to get the lyrics down. Josh was actually a pretty decent song writer, and Troye found himself genuinely liking a lot of the material, even if Josh’s style was a bit more punk rock than Troye’s, which tended to stay within the pop genre. After a few tries, he had some of the lyrics memorized enough to start putting his own flare into it, and the smile on Josh’s face when they’d wrapped up for the night was enough for Troye to forget all about stage fright for a while.

But that was yesterday; today was another story. And it was all Tyler’s fault.

Even if he was just as good looking the other day when he’d picked them up for the first time, and last night when Troye’d had a chance to look at him more properly, today was worse. The sunglasses had been replaced by a stylish pair of rectangular glasses with a bold frame, making him look more cultured. That in itself was a plus in Troye’s opinion. But that wasn’t all – sometime during the few hours it had taken them to get one of the songs pretty much down enough to play it without hiccups, Tyler had taken off the hoodie he’d been wearing so far to reveal a black, sleeveless t-shirt. From there, everything went downhill.

The sight of broad shoulders tapering into strong upper arms, solid yet dexterous past the elbow and all the way to the wrist, made Troye quite literally lose his breath. Tyler wasn’t the sort you’d necessarily call muscled but, by god, his arms where a thing of awe. They were nice and thick over the flexing biceps, and when he twirled the drum stick between fast, steady fingers, the sinews in the powerful lower arms shifted enticingly under his lightly tanned flesh.

And as if his arms weren’t lovely enough already, Tyler had a tattoo adorning the paler, soft looking skin on the inside of his lower right arm – of course, he did, because the world was cruel like that. The tattoo was of a beautiful black and white owl with a piercing gaze, just like his wearer.

All in all, Troye had a hard time knowing where to look and found himself standing there staring for what felt like long minutes, probably looking a little shell-shocked. Once he’d regained his senses, he found it quite difficult to keep his focus on the music alone. His eyes were constantly moving back to Tyler, apparently completely content to spend the rest of his life watching the man play his drums with his arms bare.

Thus the state Troye was currently in, in need of a break. It was exhausting; trying to keep up with singing new music all while his attention was divided like this. And all while Troye was struggling, Tyler was being the silent, smirking type who kept catching his eyes when Troye couldn’t stop himself from stealing glances in his direction. If that wasn’t unsettling enough, Tyler didn’t seem at all as distracted by it as Troye felt, although he had the unfair advantage of playing an instrument that was based on rudimental movement more than the conscious formation of words and nuances required in song. He’d probably be able to do it while tied up and blinded.

Troye blinked. Okay, so _that_ was not an image he should be conjuring up, or he would start panting right there, which was something he wanted to avoid. The others would probably wonder, after all. 

Closing his eyes for a moment to catch his breath, Troye tried not to think of Tyler in any capacity – certainly not his body – and failed miserably.

While Josh was the slimmer, athletic type, Tyler was definitely more solid than his brother. It showed mostly in the broadness over his chest and shoulders, giving him a much manlier impression than Josh’s thinner frame. He wasn’t buff by any means, but definitely muscled enough to be considered a bit toned. He’d probably seen a good few hours of the gym, Troye had concluded quickly.

Tyler was absolutely perfect. A nice, manly jawline and not at all as spindly as he’d been in the most recent photos Troye had seen. It was like he’d gone through a second puberty after leaving for college. Strong neck, narrow waist, a confident stance that kept his centre of gravity low and secure... Rough, calloused hands topped with strong fingers, tough and capable from years of beating rows and thrills of rhythm from the taut skins of his drums. The plains of his chest visible under the t-shirt as it stretched over his body when he moved, sloping down into gently defined pecks and, underneath, the hint of nipples just beyond the precipice of his chest, where it fell into the vast expanses of his solid stomach. And _his arms_ , oh lord, his arms... Troye gripped the edge of the windowsill he was leaning against to keep from swooning.

“You’re both welcome to stay if it’s all the same to you?”

It wasn’t unusual that he spent the night in the sofa bed in that very same room, but the question caught him off guard and he had to tighten his hold even further when spots danced before his eyes as he blinked them open. After regaining his senses, he spotted Josh looking at him from where he was leaning against the opposite wall, a fast depleting bottle of water in his hand. 

“It’s getting late and we’re gonna jam more tomorrow, anyway, so…?”

Joe, who was putting his bass in its stand and turning off his amplifier, was already agreeing to the offer. 

Troye hesitated, however, unsure of what to do. Unable to stop his eyes from going to the corner where Tyler was sitting, he caught him leaning forward and pulling up the bottom of his shirt to wipe at his forehead. Spying the hint of a taut stomach in the shadows underneath his shirt, Troye nodded his agreement; at the end of the day, Josh did make some valid points.

-!!-

Following a similar pattern, the following week went, and right along with it, so did Troye’s sanity. Or so it felt like to him.

Tyler was a constant source of distraction, to the point where Troye had been forced to start singing with his eyes closed to keep them from straying. That particular revelation came about when he’d been so into a song that he wasn’t really thinking of what he was doing, and it wasn’t until Tyler’s smile had spread into a grin that Troye woke up from his daze to realize he had practically been serenading Tyler throughout the entire song.

In the midst of all this, Troye reached an important conclusion: Tyler was _sexy_. It suddenly seemed like any preconception that Troye might have had about that word was all wrong in light of the man sitting behind the drum set, wearing a smile as sweet and supple as honey. Sometimes, when the light dimmed and night began to fall around them, Troye could almost fool himself into believing that those smiles were entirely reserved for him.

It wasn’t purely physical either. All those little looks, the laughter in his eyes, the way he would sometimes bite his lip when he tried to chop out a particularly complicated fill in the beat, the teasing remarks he traded off with his brother – they all made up little pieces of a person who Troye found more and more appealing in every way. Tyler redefined what the word “sexy” meant to him, quite similar to how he’d already changed everything Troye had known about what it was like to desire someone. Because, heaven knew, he desired Tyler. He wanted him like he’d never wanted anything before, and even though he wasn’t that experienced yet, he knew enough to understand exactly what he wanted from Tyler.

So just like that, Troye was entirely and utterly smitten. And apparently, it was obvious.

“You’re staring,” Josh said monotonously.

Joe, Troye and he were slowly making their way to the local diner a few streets down, ready to have a break after their second Saturday spent rehearsing. Tyler was staying behind, saying that he needed a shower after having worked up a sweat in the hot and humid day. They’d all suffered in the tiny shed, which had no ventilation to speak of, unable to open the door and windows because of the loud music. All they had was a fan that stood spinning in the corner, not doing much to appease the sweltering heat.

Troye had been practically melting, too, though not necessarily just from the warm weather. No, his thirst was entirely to blame on the tiny droplets of sweat skidding down Tyler’s temples and clinging, trembling, to the edge of his jaw while he beat out the rhythm of the most up-tempo song on their set list. The perspiration made the hair at the back of his neck curl in a way that was much too adorable, while an alluring sheen covered his arms and his collarbones, which were visible in the tank top he was wearing.

“What?” Troye asked after a moment, not really understanding Josh’s question, still lost in visions of Tyler’s muscles twitching and moving captivatingly under shining skin as he was.

“You’re staring at my brother.” It wasn’t a question.

“So?” Troye answered, trying to keep his voice from rising three octaves or so. His heart was racing. “He’s a good drummer; I-I’m impressed and I like watching him play!” Troye decided to ignore the way he stumbled over his explanation, feigning unawareness of what Josh was really getting at.

“Okay, let me rephrase that…” Josh fixed Troye with a determined gaze. “You’re _gawking_ at my brother.”

“I am _not_!” Troye sputtered as he swung his head around to frown at Josh, wondering if his body was flushing from head to toe in a visual representation of what it felt like it was doing.

“You kind of are, though,” Joe broke in, making a sympathetic face at Troye, which only served to annoy him further.

“Which is totally fine, by the way!” Josh hurried to add, his hands as well as his eyebrows lifting in a gesture of compliance.

Troye fisted his hands. “I am _not_ gawking at your brother,” he repeated heatedly, trying not to raise his voice too much in case anyone was out in the gardens of one the houses they passed. What if Tyler had been laughing about him and his obvious infatuation? What if he’d made a complete fool of himself?

“Just be careful, alright?” Josh continued, ignoring Troye’s protests. “Just because he’s my brother doesn’t mean I’ll let him hurt you. Or you him, for that matter.” 

Pausing for a moment to try to let the words sink in properly, Troye fell a bit behind the others as they walked along the street. Failing to make sense of what Josh was saying, he then jogged a few steps to catch up again.

“Why are you telling me this?” he asked, his voice filled with astonishment, starting to feel a bit light-headed. 

“Because I know that look.” Josh lifted his brow and pointed at Troye’s face. “You’re smitten, and if I know my brother and yourself as well as I think I do, he’s incapable of turning off the charm for long enough to keep you from falling at his feet. That’s to say, if you haven’t already.”

Troye’s frown deepened as Joe chuckled from where he was walking by his other side. He didn’t want to acknowledge why Josh knew what he looked like when he wanted someone. “Wow, I’m impressed by how highly you think of me and my ability to restrain my _raging libido_ ,” he muttered instead, adding the last bit for sarcastic bite.

Josh turned to grin toothily at him. “You keep telling yourself you’re this innocent little paragon of virtue,” he said, his voice lilting. “I know you gave Chris Mathews a blowjob at Jessie’s party.”

Troye choked on his breath and stumbled over his feet. Josh merely chuckled when Troye whirred around to grab his shoulders tightly, a cold panic flaring in his chest.

“ _Who told you that?!_ ” he hissed. He knew they’d not been very careful when he and Chris, a senior who was one of those intentionally “nerdy” types who mixed piercings with thick glasses and bowties, had tipsily stumbled into the guest bathroom in the basement at Jessica Cartwright’s overly crowded party two months ago.

“Oh, calm down, no one told me,” Josh pulled one of Troye’s hands off his shoulder before patting it reassuringly. “I saw you quite literally come out of the closet barely a minute after he’d walked out, buttoning his pants. No one else but me and Joe saw,” he added, nudging his head in the direction of their friend.

Troye mind was a whirlwind of scattered, fuzzy memories of said party and messy fumblings that he barely remembered, mixed in with imagined scenarios where people were laughing at him behind his back. He didn’t completely trust his friend to be able to say if someone else knew or not. Not that anyone had said anything to indicate that they did, but still. He’d have to be more careful with his future hook-up’s if he didn’t want to twirl out of the closet with his clothes on backwards and metaphorical lipstick smudged.

“He’s gay, too, you know. Tyler, I mean,” Josh remarked as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Troye had fallen into step beside him again, silently studying his feet as he shoved his hands in his pockets, struggling to process that revelation on top of everything else.

“I know I never really told you,” Josh continued, and wasn’t _that_ the understatement of the year. Troye was pretty sure he’d remember if Josh had told him his brother was gay. “But you know, yeah, he is, so… you’re good to go.”

“ _Josh!_ ” Troye gasped, quite sure that his friend would never stop making him sound like he’d never been surprised or chocked before, the way he was going on every time Josh said something.

“I mean, he’ll probably be okay if you make a move, and all.”

“What the hell makes you think that I even want to ‘make a move’? The fact that I’m gay?! You know, us homosexuals don’t necessarily like each other just because we happen to both like di‒”

“ _Thank you_ for the explanation,” Josh broke in, loudly at first and then gradually lowering his voice with every word, “but I think I’m fine without the imagery.”

“Are you, though? Because I’m positive you just tried to fix me up with your brother based on our mutual preference in men alone. I do know how to control myself, and it’s not like I’ve even impl‒”

“Alright, alright!” Josh shouted, lifting his hands up. “So don’t make a move then! Fuck, I’m just saying it’s fine if you do, and excuse me for noticing that you were practically drooling back there!”

“I was not,” Troye muttered, trying to sound more bored than petulant.

“I was about to go get a mop.”

“Shut the fuck up.”

A smirk tugged at Josh’s lips, but Troye refused to look at him, instead staring straight ahead as they finally drew close to the diner and, hopefully, the end of the conversation.

“I am, though,” Josh said, the smuggest of smiles playing on his lips as he looked at Troye in a calculating manner. “Okay with it, I mean. As long as you don’t go making it awkward to have you over at our place or start making out with him at the dining room table, go ahead – get some.” He even had the audacity to wink.

Troye just narrowed his eyes, which was the only response he was about to give his friend that he’d even heard him. He stayed silent, and soon enough, Joe had picked up another thread of conversation, distracting Josh from going on about it any further.

But pissed as he might want to look on the outside, Troye kept his face carefully stoic unless he’d give away the tiny butterflies fluttering about in his belly. He bit the inside of his cheek and had to summon every ounce of willpower to stop a stupid grin from spreading on his own lips. All this was, was Josh’s way of saying it he would be fine if anything was ever to happen between Troye and Tyler. It wasn’t even as if Josh was implying that Tyler liked him back. That, Troye still had no way of knowing.

-!!-

That following Friday, the day before the performance, they played the entire set several times, over and over, until Joe complained about not having any skin left on his fingertips. They’d rehearsed a lot in the past three weeks, and Troye had reached the point where he didn’t have to think to remember the lyrics or any of the nuances they’d added to the songs. He felt confident in his ability to make Josh’s music shine as best he could, and agreed with Joe’s reasoning that they were as prepared as they’d ever be.

“If we play much more, we’re gonna get complacent and start making stupid mistakes. This is as good as it gets, Josh.”

Josh sighed and shook out his hands, no doubt tired, too, from giving it his all on the guitar all day. It was getting late and they were all tired. “Fine, I guess you’re right. We have to get up pretty early to get to the gig anyway… Should we call it a night?”

At the nods and murmurs of agreement that followed his question, they started packing up their things in preparation for the trip to the festival the following morning. Troye helped along as best he could, rolling up cables and such, but kept mostly out of the way when Josh and Joe started bickering about what needed to be brought along with them or not.

Looking away from where Josh was arguing that they needed extra cables just in case, he watched Tyler give him a long look before sitting down heavily in the sofa. Tyler inclined his head toward his little brother, rolling his eyes in way of commenting about how he was going on about the stupid cables and aiming a companionable smile at Troye right after. Troye giggled under his breath and felt his cheeks heat up when he watched Tyler’s expression soften and melt into a smile that was barely there, but focused on him, just like the undivided interest dancing in his eyes.

Letting his mind drift under the spell of Tyler’s gaze, Troye wasn’t really aware as his eyes began to wander slowly down Tyler’s strong body. There was this idea that he had, this notion or prejudice perhaps – that stockier, thicker guys tended to be… well, stocky and thick _everywhere_.

With a flutter in his chest and a tightening the pits of his stomach, Troye let his gaze drop even further, until it reached the zipper of Tyler’s dark jeans. It probably would have remained there, if it wasn’t for the sudden appearance of a thumb slowly tracing the outline of a nice looking bulge. 

Gasping silently, Troye snapped his eyes back up, jolted back to awareness and blushing furiously when he caught Tyler’s gaze and the smirk that accompanied it. The blond was casually leaning back into the couch, one arm draped over the armrest and the other resting in his lap, making the movement of his finger appear a lazy, unconscious gesture. 

But even as his heartbeat was so fast and strong that he could feel it in his throat, Troye knew better than to be fooled by the offhand look of Tyler’s body language. He’d been caught staring, and going by the glint of interest in Tyler’s blue eyes that still held his, maybe that wasn’t such a bad thing.

Troye’s gaze dropped to his feet, feeling bashful yet far from embarrassed under Tyler’s unwavering scrutiny. He swallowed, trying to keep his breath from growing shallow, and looked back to where Josh and Joe were placing everything they needed to bring by one of the walls.

“You staying the night, Troye?” Josh asked suddenly as he stood up and looked back at him over his shoulder.

Troye stilled and valiantly fought the hardest battle he’d ever faced to keep from glancing back in Tyler’s direction before nodding stiffly.

“I’ll be back bright and early,” Joe said, already opening the door out to the cool, darkening night and the crickets playing in the otherwise abandoned backyard.

“Don’t you dare oversleep, Joe!” Josh called after him in warning before turning back to Troye, who still hadn’t moved from where he was standing in the corner, trying not to shift awkwardly from one foot to the other. Josh opened his mouth as if to speak, but seemed to change his mind when looking once between Troye and the couch where his brother was sitting, closing his mouth once more. Lifting one of his hands to give a little wave with his fingers, a smile slowly spread on his lips as he began backing towards the door.

“Tyler, will you help Troye set up the bed? I’m really tired, so I’m gonna go turn in,” he said, obviously trying to school his features while he reached the threshold.

Troye felt his heart jump at what Josh was implying and fixed his former-best-friend-turned-mortal-enemy with a pleading look, silently begging him to not leave him alone with Tyler. Josh couldn’t quite keep his smile at bay when he saw it, but didn’t come to his rescue, instead lifting his fingers to his lips to throw them a kiss.

“Night, night, boys! Try not to stay up too late!” he said cheerily before spinning quickly on his heel and disappearing out into the night, leaving the door open behind him.

Troye drew a stuttering breath, suddenly all too aware of how bright the lamp was that hung from the ceiling and lit up the small, square room. He squinted up at it, wondering if he could get away with turning on the two softer, wall-mounted lights on either side of the couch instead. The glare of a single, white light bulb just served to make him feel a lot more exposed that he really cared for at the moment.

But he couldn’t really make himself move, even to turn his head to look at Tyler, who was being agonizingly quiet where he was still sitting just at the edge of Troye’s peripheral vision. They’d never talked one on one before, and Troye’s hands started trembling a bit at the prospect of being alone with the man he’d been intensely lusting for over the past couple weeks.

“Want a drink?”

The unexpected question made him jump slightly, and Troye flushed with embarrassment at how obviously tense he was.

“W-what?” he asked, not sure he’d heard correctly as he turned to finally look at Tyler. The man on the couch was smiling patiently at him, and Troye was suddenly sure that Tyler hadn’t looked away from him once since Josh left.

“I have a bottle of bourbon stashed in here since the last time I was home. You want some?”

Troye lifted one of his shoulders in a shrug, pulling at the hem of his t-shirt restlessly, and glanced toward the door, which still stood open to the gradually lowering temperature of the outside.

“The bugs are getting in,” Tyler remarked, lifting his chin towards it when Troye looked back at him. “You go close the door and I’ll get the liquor.”

Troye watched as Tyler stood up and turned on the spot to reach for the back corner of the sofa, pulling it away from the wall with a few short tugs. The feet scraped noisily against the floor, and Troye took a moment in the brief respite from Tyler’s unrelenting scrutiny to draw a deep breath, just to try to steady his racing heart.

‘ _You can do this_ ,’ he thought to himself, closing his eyes briefly while curling his hands into fists. ‘ _It’s not like anything has to happen just ‘cause you’re alone together_.’ Blinking his eyes open and being helpless in preventing them from falling to the curve of Tyler’s ass where he was bending down to search behind the sofa, Troye then sighed and waved goodbye to the silly notion that he’d be able to say no if Tyler so much as hinted at interest from there on out.

Walking over to close the door quickly, he turned back just as Tyler produced a bottle of Jim Beam from its hiding place.

“Get the light too, these are much nicer,” Tyler instructed as he flicked on the first and then the second lamp on the wall.

Reaching out to the light switch beside the doorframe, Troye did as told, plunging the small space in a much dimmer light. While his eyes were grateful for the milder lighting, Troye immediately wondered if the bulb in the ceiling hadn’t been better after all – the now shadowed edges of the room suddenly made the setting seem that much more intimate, once again making Troye unsure of where to look.

“Lucky us they never clean behind this thing,” Tyler smiled as he turned to fall back into place on the sofa and gestured for Troye to come sit.

Troye cleared his throat and tried to make his way over as casually as possible, desperately wanting to hide the fact that his heart was practically about to leap out of his throat. The offer of alcohol made him both brave and a little nervous – he never drank much, even at the parties he’d been at, which had pretty much been free-for-all’s.

“I’m not sure if I should have any,” he said hesitantly as he sat down on the opposite end of the couch to where Tyler was sitting, smiling reassuringly at him. 

“I won’t tell anyone if you won’t,” he said with a grin, unscrewing the cork and setting the bottle to his lips before taking a quick swig. He held it in his mouth for bit before swallowing and squinted at Troye while reaching over to offer him the bottle.

Maybe it should have been a little creepy that Tyler, who was 23, was offering alcohol to a minor all while smirking at him suggestively. Though Troye had a feeling that he wasn’t in any danger where he was; Josh and his family were, after all, pretty much his own, and Tyler had never given the impression that he was anything but a nice guy. If anything, Troye should perhaps not jump to any conclusions in case he’d misinterpreted Tyler’s signals completely, and ended up making such a fool of himself by flirting back that he’d never be able to look Josh in the eye again.

Taking hold of the proffered bottle with a shaky hand, Troye’s fingers brushed against Tyler’s. He paused, his eyes flickering up to meet smiling blues for the space of a breath, before pulling the bottle from Tyler’s hand. The amber liquid sloshed slightly as he tilted the bottle to sniff it. The smell that hit his senses reminded him of the whiskeys his dad treated himself to sometimes after dinner. It had always smelled too strong for his tastes, but for some reason, a little liquid courage sounded exactly like what he needed.

Tilting his head back, Troye placed the glass bottle to his mouth and let the liquor hit his lips and passed them to his tongue. The sensation and taste of it was a bit more oily than the rough burn of alcohol that he’d expected – smooth almost – and he rolled the liquid along his palate for a second while peering at the bottle in his hand before swallowing slowly.

“Good?” Tyler asked from his seat next to him, and Troye shrugged.

“S’alright, I guess.”

“Good.” The smile of relief was detectable in Tyler’s voice, and Troye let his eyes drift over to him to watch it stretch his lips.

As he studied him silently, lingering over it, he quickly concluded that for all of the reasons why Tyler was such a handsome man, his smile was without a doubt his best feature. It lit up his entire face, illuminating the world around him along with it, almost as if he couldn’t help but make everyone’s day just that little bit brighter wherever he went.

Troye sighed, catching himself doing it after the fact, and looked away quickly, eyes flickering over the room and feeling himself blush once more. He thought he heard a soft snicker leave the man sitting next to him, but he couldn’t be sure, busy as he was taking another swig of the bourbon.

“So you and Josh have been friends for a while?”

Troye pulled the bottle from his lips and wiped them with the back of his hand, nodding as he handed the drink back to Tyler. “Yeah, since a couple years back when I moved here with my family. We met in music class, and clicked right from the start.”

“Yeah? That’s good…” Tyler trailed off.

Troye glanced at the blond, watching him swivel the bottle in a circle as it hung from his fingers, its content forming a swirling, liquid funnel as he halted the motion abruptly. Tyler looked lost in thought, and Troye shifted a bit, the warming quality of the alcohol working to relax him enough to lean back and lower his shoulders, which he hadn’t noticed had been tense before then.

A few moments passed in silence where Troye wondered if there was a second part to what Tyler had been saying, before Tyler cleared his throat and leaned forward to pick up a drumstick that had fallen to the floor. As he sat back again, he sank lower in his seat.

“I hope you won’t be angry at him for telling me,” Tyler began, lifting his eyes to Troye’s with a crooked smile and handing him the bottle again, “but Josh told me you were gay a few months ago.” He paused and licked his lips, his fingers twirling the drumstick in a complicated pattern in what seemed to be almost a reflex.

“Oh?” Troye didn’t really know what to say to that.

Tyler grinned. “My family’s great about these things. When I came out I had expected more of a reaction, to be honest, but it never came. Not that I thought they’d have a problem with it, but I don’t know – coming out at 21 might have made it more of a formality than any real revelation, anyway.”

Troye swallowed, suddenly inappropriately curious about how much experience Tyler had. “So, um… Have you brought any boyfriends home since then?” Tyler looked up at him with lifted eyebrows, and Troye barely kept from slapping his own forehead at how stupid he’d managed to make himself look in so few words. ‘ _Way to be discreet_ ,’ he added in his mind.

“No, nothing quite so serious,” Tyler answered slowly, his fingers still spinning the drumstick endlessly. He was studying Troye curiously, a smile playing on his lips. “But let’s say college did me good in many ways.”

Funny how, when Tyler winked, it wasn’t nearly as aggravating as when Josh did it. Troye chose to focus on that instead of conjuring mental representations of what Tyler was suggesting.

“You know what they say about fratboys?” Tyler asked while lowering his voice conspiratorially, leaning a bit closer. Troye remained motionless, however, because he had no idea what Tyler was talking about, even if he could hazard a guess. “All true,” Tyler provided with a nod.

“Oh,” Troye said again, wondering if Tyler thought he seemed a bit thick with how utterly incapable of witty responses he was.

“You?” Tyler’s question made him lift his gaze again. “Any hot guys sweep you off your feet yet?”

Warmth spread across the skin of Troye’s face once more and he knew that his blush was probably painfully obvious. “Not really,” he whispered, studying the bottle in his hands.

“No?” Tyler asked, his voice going a bit husky, or was that just Troye’s imagination? “Their loss...”

If Troye had hoped his blush would go down, that aspiration was quickly squashed under the newly reinforced heat that flamed over his cheeks at Tyler’s breathy comment. Tyler inched a little closer, and Troye gulped, watching him out of the corner of his eye. He could feel the heat coming off of Tyler even through the denim of his jeans.

Settling so close that their legs were almost touching, Tyler drew breath to speak again. “You’ve got an amazing voice, too.”

His stomach flipped, making his skin tingle. Tyler’s compliments were going to go right to his head and he really didn’t care. “You… you really think so?”

“Mm-hm,” Tyler nodded. “You’ve got this way of sounding… I don’t know… breathy, almost a bit raspy. I really like listening to you sing.”

Troye dared a glance at Tyler, seeing him smile softly. Feeling like he needed to return the compliment somehow, Troye fumbled for something to say. “Thank you, that’s really nice of you… um, you’re good too. At drumming, I mean.”

Tyler laughed, the sound warm and deep. “Well, thank you! I’m good at a lot of things…”

Troye felt goosebumps rise on his skin. His eyes followed the movement of Tyler’s fingers as they twirled the drumstick, becoming momentarily lost while watching it as it made complicated patterns in the air. Troye couldn’t help but feel like Tyler had fully intended to be suggestive with what he’d said. It made him blush again.

Tyler lifted his eyes back up to Troye’s a moment or two after going silent, and continued, “You know, when Josh told me about you, he said you were cute,” Tyler lifted a hand to make quotation marks in the air, “‘for a guy.’” He added the last bit with a roll of his eyes before focusing back on Troye, his smile softening as he held his gaze for a moment.

Troye’s hands tensed and gripped the bottle harder as he waited, his breath shallow as he stared back at Tyler. His heart was beating a mile a minute.

“He was right.” Tyler’s voice was a breathy whisper.

Lowering his gaze quickly, Troye was helpless to stop the smile that stretched his lips.

“Is that okay? Me saying that, I mean?” Tyler’s words were soft, careful almost, and Troye looked at him from under his lashes.

“Yeah, I… Thank you, I guess?” he said quietly, feeling his heart skip a beat at the attentive look in Tyler’s eyes, like he was hanging onto every word as he let them drop to Troye’s lips.

“Would…” Tyler began, cutting himself off and clearing his throat. He halted the movement of his fingers, making the drumstick stop abruptly, and focused back on Troye, a determined glint in his eyes. “Would it be okay if I kissed you?”

For a moment, Troye stopped breathing, and he wondered briefly if his heart had somehow stopped too. His eyes widened as he stared back at Tyler, not really sure what to say.

Tyler blinked once and looked away, lowering his gaze to his hands. “I’m sorry, I…” He shook his head. “I don’t know what made me say that. I am way too old for you, and‒”

Before he could allow himself to think about it too much and risk losing his courage, Troye leaned in and pressed his lips against Tyler’s. Tyler stopped speaking as soon as their lips made contact and he held very, very still for the space of a heartbeat before he relaxed and began kissing back.

The drumstick clattered to the floor and Troye drew a deep breath in through his nose when Tyler’s fingers sank into the hair on the back on his head, making his stomach swoop. The warm hand held him steady as Tyler tilted his head and deepened the kiss, opening his lips to swipe at Troye’s with a careful tongue. Troye opened to allow it entrance into his mouth, where he met it with his own. A tiny little whimper escaped him before he could stop it.

Tyler gently plucked the bottle from Troye’s hands and slowly leaned over to set it on the floor next to them, careful to not break their kiss.

Giving a soft noise of surprise, Troye’s hands flew up to grip Tyler’s upper arms when he twisted them around and tipped Troye back onto the couch, one steadying hand on his hip and the other still buried in his curls. Troye’s fingertips curled into Tyler’s strong arms and he thought, ‘ _Finally_.’

It wasn’t as if Troye had ever been in a situation like this one before, but somehow his body seemed to know just what to do, since his legs folded over and between them before one lifted on its own accord to hook around Tyler’s hip. Tyler gave soft grunt in agreement with Troye’s compliance and settled lightly on top of him. He spread his fingers on his hip, fingertips dipping underneath the hem of his t-shirt and stroking up and up, splaying over the sensitive skin of his side. Troye shivered at the sensation, feeling goosebumps spread over his body.

Their kiss was growing heavier, more desperate, and Troye gave a stuttered moan when Tyler rolled his hips into his. Suddenly, he was very aware of just how hard he was, and that Tyler’s matching hardness pressed into his lower stomach, feeling it clearly even through the layers of their clothes.

Tyler huffed out a breath and lifted up a little, breaking their kiss. “We can stop at any time you want; I don’t want to make you think that we have to‒”

“No, no,” Troye interrupted. His hands, trembling from how excited he was, had fallen to the bottom of Tyler’s tank top and curled around the edge, ready to pull it off. “I want to.”

He kept his eyes steady and clear on Tyler’s. He wanted to show him that he really meant it and that there wasn’t enough of a buzz in his head from the bourbon to make him rash – it just made him a bit braver than usual.

The beginnings of a smile tugged at Tyler’s lips while Troye tugged at his shirt, wanting him to lift up so he could take it off. Tyler complied, sitting up on his knees.

Troye’s breath caught in his throat when Tyler lifted his arms above his head and pulled the shirt from his body. The sight of Tyler’s bare chest, with long plains and gently rolling hills of strong flesh, made his heart do a double beat and he didn’t realize he’d made a little whimpering noise until Tyler chuckled warmly at him.

“I’ve seen how you’ve looked at me,” Tyler said, his voice low and deep, his smile indulging.

Unable to stop himself from reaching out, Troye lifted his hand to run light fingertips down the soft skin on display in front of him, a sigh so soft it was almost inaudible escaping his lips at finally touching what he’d imagined himself touching for long weeks.

Tyler’s smile fell into a smirk as he watched Troye study his torso. “It’s kind of a turn-on.”

“What is?” Troye was a bit too dazed to keep track of all his senses, and blinked up at Tyler’s eyes, seeing his smirk widen.

Tyler leaned forward and tugged at Troye’s shirt, quickly pulling it from his body and tossing it onto the floor somewhere. The sensible side of Troye’s mind raised the question about what could happen if Josh or any other member of his family were to suddenly walk in on them, but it was quickly silenced when Tyler breathed in deeply and walked himself forward on his knuckles to slowly settle into place on top of him once more. They both sighed as their skin made contact, the sensation warm and soft and secure.

“The way you look at me like you’re right on the brink of snapping and that, at any moment, you won’t be able to control yourself or your actions anymore,” Tyler whispered, leaning up on one elbow, his palm cupping the side of Troye’s face, while his other hand reached down to unbutton Troye’s jeans. “Like you’re seconds away from jumping my bones.”

“You’re not wrong,” Troye breathed, forgetting all about being shy when Tyler made quick work of his zipper. His eyes fell closed when Tyler reached up to slip inside the elastic of his boxers, his own arms lifting to wrap around his shoulders. He gasped and gave a stuttered moan when Tyler’s warm, slightly calloused hand wrapped around his length.

“I’ve imagined this,” Tyler whispered as he leaned down to mouth at Troye’s jaw, following it down to his ear as his hand slowly began to stroke him. “Holding you; feeling you go all soft and pliant under my touch, yet so hard and eager in my hand; making you feel good.”

Troye keened, his pulse beating hard in his veins at Tyler’s words, laced with lust, making him go burning hot all over.

“Wringing these exact noises from your mouth; hearing your lovely voice call out for me. But nothing I could have imagined comes close to reality.”

One hand reaching up to the back of Tyler’s head, Troye gripped his hair tightly and brought their lips back together in a deep, firm kiss. Tyler’s hand stroked up and gave a little twist at the end, and Troye’s touch lost any and all delicacy as his hips jerked, pushing himself up into Tyler’s hand roughly. A moan tumbled from his mouth and into Tyler’s.

Breaking the kiss with one short press of lips, Tyler moved to kiss the corner of Troye mouth, and then on to his cheek and down to his chin. Tilting his head to reach the skin under his jaw, Tyler began a journey of kisses down Troye’s throat to his chest, where he paused to lave one nipple in soft, long strokes with the flat of his tongue. His hand was still stroking him steadily as he continued on to the plains of Troye’s quivering stomach, pressing the gentlest of kisses to his skin, which felt boiling hot under the cool rush of Tyler’s stilted breath.

Troye arched into the touches. They were light enough to be on the very edge of tickling, yet too sincere to be anything but dizzyingly arousing. Heat was building under his skin, spreading across the surface of his body, like lightening sometimes rippled and rushed out over the vast belly of a storm cloud. 

His breath was panting, and when Tyler laid one last, lingering kiss to the skin just below his belly button, Troye whimpered again, bracing himself for‒

Barely had he finished the thought before a warm, wet tongue swept over the very tip of his erection, causing his body to tighten and arch. An open-mouthed moan ripped from his throat and he pressed his head back into the cushion. His hands flew to Tyler’s head, burying his fingers in the soft, blond tresses and pressing his fingertips into his scalp convulsively.

A rush of breath over his hot flesh accompanied the sound of Tyler’s soft laughter. “Like that?”

Troye was only able to gurgle vaguely in response, but it seemed that Tyler had no problem understanding him since he lowered his head and closed petal soft lips around him. His tongue circled the head a few times, teasing him with the maddening sensation, before he started lowering his mouth. After taking in a good few inches, Tyler hollowed his cheeks and began retreating slowly. 

Bending his legs at the knee for purchase on the sofa beneath him, Troye tried to follow the movement by lifting his hips. Warm, steady hands on his hips held him down, though, and he whimpered at the loss of that incredible, scorching heat around his length.

As soon as Tyler’s lips released him with a little popping noise, the tongue was back, circling and swirling, making Troye’s toes curl as he gasped and moaned helplessly. Rubbing at Tyler’s scalp in encouragement, Troye lifted his head to give him a pleading look.

He realized his mistake when he met Tyler’s gaze, searing hot and almost completely blackened out by his dilated pupils. His gaze was steady, and he looked like he’d already been staring up at Troye the entire time, watching him take his pleasure from his mouth and moving restlessly underneath his touch.

A tiny “meep” left Troye, completely transfixed by the sight of Tyler’s expression, coupled with the lewd way that his mouth was open, hovering over the tip of him while his tongue dipped into the slit and warm breath washed over Troye’s lap. Seeing him lift his tongue back into his mouth, connecting them with a string of clear liquid, the height of Troye’s pleasure mounted as Tyler tasted him.

A groan rumbled from Tyler’s chest and his eyes fell closed as he opened up once more to take Troye inside his mouth, going deeper this time before moving up again. One of his hands left Troye’s hip to grip him around the root, holding him steady as he began a slow rhythm up and down. Troye’s head fell back with a muted thud, a moan torn from his throat.

The hand on his other hip slid down the crease between Troye’s leg and groin, making him shiver as fingertips slid over sensitive skin. For a moment, Tyler’s mouth left him, and the rush of cold air around him had Troye lifting his head abruptly to stare down at Tyler, wondering what in the world he was doing stopping when it was getting so very, very good; when he was getting so close.

Tyler looked up at him and winked as he brought his hand to his mouth, quickly sucking two fingers into his mouth. Troye gasped, a rush of heat making his body flush at the implications, as much as that was possible when you had a guy holding your dick while pausing in the blowjob he was currently giving you.

His hands slid from Tyler’s head to his neck and further onto his shoulders, gripping them like vises. Tyler finished wetting his fingers and smiled that damned, unfair, charmingly crooked smile at him while reaching down between his legs.

“Can I?” Tyler whispered, and Troye nodded, the movement fast and eager. Because he _was_ eager! No one had ever touched him there before, not even his own fingers. It was an exciting prospect to have Tyler be the first boy – _man_ – to know him so intimately.

Troye let his head fall back again, unable to look Tyler in the eye while he nudged Troye’s leg further to the side, his thumb stroking down over the sensitive skin of his balls and reaching further back. A whimper left Troye unbidden when he felt wet fingertips press against him with the confidence and determination of a man who knew what he was doing.

The knowledge made a warmth spread through him that had little to do with his arousal, but was entirely down to how secure and… treasured he felt in Tyler’s arms. He knew Tyler wouldn’t do anything beyond what he was ready for, and it made him relax, trusting Tyler to show him pleasures he’d yet to learn.

Rubbing back and forth over his furled skin, Tyler teased him with his fingertips, pressing firmly yet not firm enough to breach him. Troye grunted and rolled his hips. He was torn between wanting more and thoroughly enjoying the little flashes of pleasure that shot up his spine when Tyler pressed up against the taut skin just above his entrance. Somehow, he had a feeling that this new pleasure would be the end of him, or at least his sanity. It was slowly slipping as it was…

Taking the tip of his length back into his mouth, Tyler sank slowly down over it again, letting it nudge the back of his throat briefly, backing away again when Troye’s nails surely gouged at the skin of his shoulders. Whining impatiently, Troye tried to move down on Tyler’s fingers, somehow angling his hips up to indicate his enjoyment of his hot mouth in the same motion, and somewhere in the middle, in the jumble of his arousal, Troye was loosing sight of what was up and what was down.

Tyler took pity on him, taking him in again, but this time, he pressed a little firmer with one of his fingers, and just as the tip breached Troye’s entrance, the back of Tyler’s throat opened up to swallow him down.

Crying out, Troye arched up off the sofa, his back taut and his thighs trembling. A firm hand pressed onto his lower stomach, patiently urging him to lie back down. Troye did as best he could, his breathing labored and sharp. Tyler’s throat was moving around him in tight waves, the sensation fanning out and making Troye’s skin tingle like when your foot fell asleep, only this feeling covered his entire body, focusing on and around his loins.

Tyler backed away slowly, drawing a sharp breath when Troye left his throat. In the midst of the sharp sensations, Troye had completely missed how Tyler’s finger had sunk inside him, all the way to the last knuckle. There was no escaping it now, though, since a strange feeling of movement came from a weirdly indistinguishable place inside him, difficult to pinpoint exactly.

After a moment, it hit him that Tyler was moving his finger, bending it in a “come hither”-motion and pressing it towards his front. Troye wiggled his hips experimentally, and gasped again when something flashed through him – something like electricity. It spread out from where Tyler was pressing his finger.

“Again,” he gasped, unable to form more words to explain that he needed more of that incredible pleasure. He could feel Tyler snicker lightly around him, his mouth still working Troye’s arousal, the suction a constant now as he moved along the length of him.

Tyler pulled his finger out slowly, and Troye whimpered in anticipation as a second fingertip settled against him along the first. Moving off to spit onto his fingers, Tyler quickly caught his tip again, the sensation of heat enveloping him almost reassuring at this point. 

Troye’s breath stuttered and he moaned loudly when Tyler pressed both fingers back in at once, the movement unhurried but determined. He curled them again, this time hitting that amazing spot dead on.

Opening his mouth on a silent cry, Troye’s throat tried to make a noise that would express what he felt, but failed miserably as Tyler kept rubbing over that same spot over and over. The sensation almost became too much, and Troye’s hands scrambled for purchase on Tyler’s shoulders, needing something to hold on to, to anchor him.

Groaning around his hard flesh, Tyler sucked a little firmer, his tongue rolling over his flesh, constantly coaxing him closer to his peak. The hand on Troye’s stomach reached down to cup his balls instead, rolling them gently in his palm as he worked Troye’s body into a frenzy.

Troye’s toes began to tingle, the hair on his arms lifting as red hot pleasure fired through his limbs. His legs shook, so he tightened them around Tyler’s shoulders, sure that he was making Tyler uncomfortable but unable to stop it as his entire body began trembling.

Tyler sped up the pace, and Troye moaned as that impossible heat began moving faster over him. The fingers inside of him, stretching his opening and showing him pleasure like he’d never known it could be, began moving in and out too, mirroring the movement of Tyler’s mouth. Troye bore down on Tyler’s hand, needing more – more fingers, more mouth, more of that incredible sensation spreading out from his very core, more of everything. His heart was speeding in his chest, and he whimpered as he moved ever closer to the brink of no return.

With a deep breath, Tyler sucked him in again, swallowing him down, and that was all Troye needed to be flung into the oblivion of release.

His vision tunneled and he cried out, his body seizing up and jerking as the spasming waves of orgasm washed over him. He could feel himself clamp down on Tyler’s fingers, his muscles rippling around them as Tyler rubbed and rubbed that sensitive spot inside him. He came in gushes into Tyler’s mouth, and lost his breath as he felt Tyler swallow around him.

Spots swam before his eyes as he slowly began coming down from his high, the pleasure gentling into a pulsing heat. He opened his mouth, gulping down deep breaths of air, trying to form coherent enough thoughts to offer Tyler a return of the favor.

He didn’t have time to, however, since Tyler lifted his mouth off his slowly softening length with a gasp and removed his fingers quickly but gently, and lifted up on shaky arms only to fall forward onto Troye’s limp body. Capturing his mouth in a deep, sloppy kiss, Tyler moaned sharply and rolled his hips into Troye’s.

Troye’s forgot all about his exhaustion, because, _holy fuck_ , having Tyler desperately rut his jean-covered, hard length into his hip because he was too turned on to have time for anything more complicated was the hottest fucking thing he’d ever experienced. He wrapped his arms around Tyler’s shoulders, gripping him tightly as Tyler held him close, breathing harsh, hot gusts of air into the crook of his neck in time with his thrusts.

It didn’t take more than a few more furious thrusts before Tyler was whimpering into Troye’s skin and his hips were twitching with release. He moaned, reaching up to hold Troye’s head as Troye turned his face towards him to kiss his hair. His hands stroked over the long expanses of skin on his back, feeling his muscles move and ripple under the soft, warm skin, damp with perspiration. 

The air in the little shed smelled like sex and warm bodies, and mixed in with a hint of the subtle cologne Tyler wore, it was the best thing Troye had ever known. He smiled into Tyler’s hair, loving the way Tyler’s breath was still washing over the skin of his shoulder and neck as well as the strange, almost protective feeling that started to fill him as he held Tyler while he recovered his senses again. 

Tyler slowly lifted his head, peering at Troye with heavily lidded eyes, and gave him a sleepy smile. Leaning in, he captured Troye’s mouth a lazy kiss that said it all; how good that had felt, how he hoped Troye had liked it too, and how happy he was to be right where he was. And if his lips stretched into a tiny, self-satisfied grin, he kept it teasing enough to be endearing.

Welcoming Tyler’s slow re-exploration of his mouth, Troye could taste the bourbon and something that he realized with a thrill was his own essence. It didn’t turn him off, though; quite the opposite really. 

But his hopes for a second round were dampened when Tyler broke their kiss to whisper against his lips, “Wanna come inside and sleep in my bed tonight?”

A thrill of something light and tingling fluttered through Troye’s heart, and he opened his eyes to stare up at Tyler, swallowing slowly.

“You mean, and stay until the morning?” 

Tyler nodded, his smile growing as if warming up more to the idea. 

“I don’t know…” Troye trailed off, suddenly unsure. “What if Josh finds out? Or your parents?” 

Tyler studied him silently for a moment, his eyes flickering over his features. “You care?” 

Caught off guard by the question, Troye blinked. An image flashed before his mind, one where he woke up to the bright dawn wrapped in strong, secure arms and cuddled into a warm embrace, and he smiled, suddenly sure of his answer. 

“No.” 

His smile spreading into a grin, Tyler beamed down at him and pecked his lips quickly. “Good. Let’s go then; I need to get out of these pants. I’ve not done that,” he said gesturing towards his groin, which was probably uncomfortably wet and sticky, “since I was a teenager.” 

“I hope you’re not blaming _me_ ,” Troye teased, feeling a rush of happiness fills his chest at the easy banter between them. 

“Who says I’m complaining?” Tyler murmured before kissing Troye again before sitting up, bringing Troye up with him. 

Troye wrapped his arms around Tyler’s neck. He smiled into the kiss, imagining Josh’s face in the morning when he found out that Troye had stayed in Tyler’s room. Risking a lecture from the parents would definitely be worth it. 

-!!- 

Elongating the last note, Troye held it as the song faded out around him. He’d kept his eyes closed during most of the performance, but now he blinked them open to look out onto the crowd filling the “Local talent”-stage tent in front of him. 

Hundreds of pairs of eyes looked back at him, yet he didn’t feel nervous at all. There was only one pair that really mattered, and he could feel them burning into the back of his head. In a good way. 

As thunderous applause erupted around them, Troye felt a grin spread on his lips, and he turned his head to look back over his shoulder at the sweaty, blond man behind the drum set. Tyler was grinning back at him, twirling his drumsticks between his fingers as he blew him a kiss. 

Laughing in delight, Troye looked over to his right and caught Josh’s eyes. His friend was smiling too, looking from the crowds to Troye and back to Tyler. He rolled his eyes as he caught Tyler’s gesture, and Troye laughed again. 

Just like that, the worries he’d had over the last few weeks – the last months even – were gone, possibly never to return again. And he had two very special boys to thank for it, both of whom he had a feeling would be part of his life for a long time to come. 


End file.
